Improvement in wood-splitting machines



1 12mm. WOOD-SPLITTING MACHINE.

No 171,953, Patented Jan.11,18'7 6.

' Fig.2.

NPETERS. FHQTO-UTHOGRAPHER, WASHINGTON. D C.

UNITED STATES PATENT @FFIC'E.

FRANKLIN RAND, OF MEDFORD, MASSACHUSETTS.

IMPROVEMENT IN WOOD-SPLITTING MACHINES.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 171,953, dated January11, 1876; application. filed December 9, 1675.

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, FRANKLIN RAND, of Medford, of the county ofMiddlesex and State of Massachusetts, have invented an Improvement inWood-Splitting Machines and do hereby declare the same to be fullydescribed in the following specification, and represented in theaccompanying drawings, of which- Figure 1 is a top view, Fig. 2 atransverse section, Fig. 3 a side view, and Fig. 4 a longitudinalsection, of it.

My invention relates to the combination of a reversible tray with anintermittently-moving carriage and knife, provided with mechanism foroperating them, as hereinafter explained. V

In the drawings, A denotes the frame for supporting the operative parts,it being provided'with horizontal and parallel ways B B, and a carriage,(J, to slide rectilinearly therein. Resting on the carriage, and betweenthe two ways B B, is a tray, D, for receiving the blocks of wood to becut or split into what is termed, kindling. This tray is square inhorizontal section, to enable it to be turned about, so as to cause theknife, after having made a series of parallel cuts, to cut at rightangles therewith. This knife is shown at E as fixed to a lever, F,pivoted near one end of itto the frame, and at the other to a rod, G,which at its lower end is pivoted to a slide, H, arranged within avertical grooved guide, I, secured to the frame. A rod, K, is pivoted tothe slide, and to acrank-wheel, L, fixed on a shaft, M. The said shaft,arranged as shown, has a gear, a, to engage with a pinion, b, fixed on adriving-shaft, N, all being as represented;

While the driving-shaft is in revolution, a reciprocating verticalmotion will be imparted to the knife. The slide H, guide I, and theupper of the connecting-rods G H serve to keep the knife-carrier in avertical plane, or from being drawn laterally against its guides, so asto be worn thereby, and increase the friction of its operation.

In order to feed the carriage forward with an intermittent movement,there is fixed to the said carriage, on its under side, a toothed rack,b, to engage with a lever-pawl, c, pivoted to a triangular piece orlever, d, that is pivoted to the frame A. The longer arm of thepawl-lever is heavier than the shorter one or pawl, in order to forcethe latter up to the rack. The part d is pivoted to a rod, 6, connectedwith the collar f of an eccentric, g, fixed on the shaft M.

Furthermore, there is extended along underneath the longer arm of thepawl-lever a shaft, it, supported in bearings it. This shaft has a smallarm, k, projected from its middle, and it also has an arm or handle, 1,extended from one end of it, and up within a stop-piece, m, all beingand arranged as represented.

By means of the shaft h and its arm and handle, the front lever may bemoved and kept out of engagement with the rack, in order for thecarriage to be drawn back, when necessary, by manual power applied to ahandle, 0, projecting from such carriage.

In operating with the machine, the tray is first to be charged orfilledwith short pieces of wood set up endwise in it, after which, thedriving-shaft being in revolution, the carriage, with the tray, will beintermittently ad-- vanced, the knife being depressed upon, and raisedfrom, the charge duringeach intermission or period of rest of the saidcarriage. After the carriage may have been moved to the extreme limit ofits advance, it should be retracted, and the tray should be turnedaround,

a so as to cause the cuts in the wood to beat right angles with theknife. Next, the'carriage should be advanced as before. These operationswill cause each of the blocks of wood to be reduced to smaller pieces,and each of them afterward to be reduced or cut into several pieces.

I claim-- The reversible tray D, in combination with the carriage G andknife E, provided with mechanism for operating them, as specified.

FRANKLIN RAND. Witnesses: V

R. H. EDDY, J. R. SNow.

